Modern urban versus traditional rural Afghanistan, then and now. Time may have moved on, but the problems are big enough to be extremely concerning. The positions of the Afghan state in 1989 and 2014 are in certain respects very similar – too similar for comfort.

A positive spin can clearly be put on recent financial data coming out of Spain but many Spaniards are cynical about the “success story” being trumpeted by the government. This enthusiasm for the “tough decisions” of austerity comes at a high price for ordinary Spaniards.

The Jaipur Literature Festival has not just grown; it has evolved into an Indian show. The global meets local will be one way of describing this transformation. The literature in Indian languages, the culture of the state of Rajasthan and even the endangered languages figured prominently in the event this year.

Marion Meade, author of Lonelyhearts, a biography about West, takes a look at his life in Hollywood and the story behind his most famous work, The Day of the Locust, which remains the gold standard for Hollywood fiction.